Macaron Tutorial

Monday, January 09, 2012

The first time I heard about Squam Lake and Squam Workshops I said outloud "Ugh?". That was last year. Now, when I hear those words, something inside of me lights up and I say "heck yes!"

Squam is truly a magical place. A three day retreat put together by a group of talented women with the gorgeous Elizabeth leading the troups. I was honored to be asked by Elizabeth to come teach last September and the experience changed me deeply. I understood I needed to be nicer to myself. My inner child resurfaced. The one everyone in my family talks about. I found her again. It made me progress and gave me what I called a work inspired. A direction. I am not letting go of that feeling, no matter how hard it is to express.

At Squam, I met women so reserved, it was a gift to see their personalities transpire through their paintings, screen printing or story telling sessions. I also meant women so gifted at expressing themselves and leading others into tapping into their resources, that it was inspiring in itself when I went to lead my workshops there.

Back in September, I taught two food photography and styling class at Squam and really did not want to see the sessions end. The morning was devoted to cooking the food we would be styling and photographing in the afternoon. We had the luxury of the camp's commercial kitchen, equipped with everything we could need. During one session we made savory tarts and the day after we made cobblers and crisp.

And we shared with everyone...I had the best roomates to come back to at night and share a glass of wine with in front of a warm fire. A couple of slices of tarts or a spoonful of cobbler and we were good to chat the night away.

I was thrilled when Elizabeth asked me to come back and teach again this year. Not once but three times! I just can't wait. I love how each session combines cooking and photographing so no matter what you forte is with food and pictures, you will learn and have fun in the process. I loved all my students last year and learned so much from them too that I can't wait to meet the new ones this year!

I will be teaching two classes at the Squam June Retreat In New Hampshire(I know it reads that one class is over 2 days but both are all day classes. All day Thursday and all day Friday). Then I will be back in NH at Squam for their September Retreat with two more classes. And I am super excited to be teaching at Squam By The Sea on the North Carolina Outer Banks. Check all the classes and schedules on the website. Hope to see you there!

Making. Creating. Having fun. Letting go. Going with the flow. There is something for everyone at Squam. No matter your skill level. Hanging out is also a art form you know...!

Picture by Christine Chitnis.

To celebrate this year's workshops and their brand new shiny website, the folks at Squam are doing a little giveaway for you guys. Every month, the Squam site will offer one exclusive item for sale. This January, it's these much coveted cups from Gleena Ceramics. I am thrilled to see my friend Asya's gorgeous pieces associated with all the goodness that is Squam. Up for grabs is the "s" is for squam cup.

All you have to do is leave a comment on this post. I will draw the name of the lucky winner on Tuesday at noon (Eastern US time). Why not taking this opportunity to tell me one Special talent that you have...!

Picture by Christine Chitnis.

Squam is fun, Squam is enriching, Squam is what you want it to be. No one to force you into anything. No one to frown or look at you sideways. Squam is sharing. Tart and cobbler recipes after the jump!

Directions:In the bowl of a food processor fitted with a plastic blade, pulse together the flour and salt. Add the cold butter all at once. Pulse until the flour is the size of tiny peas. Drizzle the ice water through the mouth of the food processor, while pulsing. Stop just when the pastry begins to come together. Empty the bowl onto a lightly floured surface and form into a disk using your hands. Wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. This can be done up to 2-3 days in advance. You can of course, do the whole thing by hand.

Once the pastry has rested, preheat the oven to 375F. Roll it out on a lightly floured surface, to about 1/4" thickness. Line the tart pan with the pastry (or several tart shells if doing small ones). Line with parchment paper and fill it with pie weights or dried beans and bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes. Remove the parchment and weights, brush down the bottom, sides and edges of the tart shell with the egg wash using a pastry brush. Return the tart pan to the oven and bake another 10 minutes or until golden. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool slightly.Fill the tart shell(s) with the ratatouille, top with the feta or goat cheese and return to the oven for about 20 minutes.

Directions:Preheat the oven to 350F (convection or regular) and position a rack in the center. Prepare the fruit filling:Place the blackberries in a large bowl with the honey, lemon zest and juice, cornstarch and cardamom. Toss well and reserve.

Prepare the crisp topping:In a medium bowl, combine with your fingertips or a pastry blender the flour, sugar and butter and form large clumps of dough. Refrigerate at least an hour or freeze overnight.

Assemble and bake:Divide the fruit filling evenly among 6 gratin dishes or ramekins. If the crisp dough was refrigerated, just break apart clumps of it over the fruit with your fingertips. If it was frozen, you can simply grate it on top with a large cheese grater.Bake for 20-30 minutes. Let cool.

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comments:

Beautiful photos, of course. As for special talents, I think mine is the ability to pay attention; to be engaged with whomever or whatever is happening at a particular moment in time. People appreciate it in so many ways...

I see Squam everywhere right now & I am hoping so much that I get to attend the Italy one. If not, I'm going to throw myself into learning as much as I can about photography, and about myself, and then try again next year.

I guess my talents can be counted as performing. I was a theatre major in college and trained as a ballet apprentice when I was younger. So much of the talent for that comes from the heart and love for it as well.

I'm all about handmade Items me and my mom are crafters so id much rather buy from small businesses! And these are just adorable I'll have to check out the site as well! Happy new year keep up the great posts!

Oh, wow. These are so pretty. Patience is my special talent, and something you don't really think about until you grow older and are faced with an onslaught of "worries" or things to do. Thanks for the chance to win!

Once again love the beautiful pictures on your website. I have many talents, as I'm into the do-it-yourself lifestyle. But one my my talents is being artistic. I like making things look creative and different or pleasing to the eye. And also picking out the beauty of things in life.

Yum, the tart looks great and those cups are adorable! I tried to register for one of the Squam workshops last year but learned about it too late. This year, it's sadly not in my budget, but it's most definitely on the must do list. As for special talents, I'm pretty good with my hands and usually pretty crafty, but mostly I like observing people and I'm a fairly good mediator.

Great pictures!Looks like an amazing place.I would say my special talent is that I am very detail oriented. Found my love in food photography recently (thanks to the support of your wonderful book)which goes very well with my talent.Greetings from ColoradoKirsten

I wish I could teach culinary arts!! Your blog would be a daily resource. My special talent is being myself in the classroom - for better or worse, for dorky and absent minded. My students know I am the real me.

I was lucky enough to be in the tart class. Not only did I overcome my fear of pastry, but my delicious tarts saved the evening when we were too tired to head to town for dinner following the Art Fair on Saturday night.I hope to take a class with you again!

I've been considering Squam for a couple of years now and this *could* be the year. I hope so! I'm loving these little cups and the giveaways, and I can't wait to try out the blackberry cobbler recipe. If I go, I'll surely be signing up for your class!

I love these cup give-aways and intend to keep trying! I've never been to Squam and already decided that when (ahem) I win the Squam mug it will go on my altar as a manifestation symbol and I'll drink to you all until I can get there!

i wish i had the funds to participate... my special talent is actually my ability to teach myself - i am a passionate and devoted auto-didactic. i have found my way to photography and other things this way, things which will keep on giving... whether or not you honor me w/ a gadget! :)

Wow! I've never heard of Squam before, but it looks so creative and fun. I loved your comments about rediscovering a part of you that was there when you were a child! It's very enticing! I guess what I'm good at is looking at something and trying to make my own "take" on it. Does that mean I'm a copycat? I hope not, but maybe so! Anyway, thanks for the opportunity to be a part of the giveaway and thanks for your beautiful sharing!

Hi Hélène,After buying your book, I've only recently discovered your blog both of which are wonderful and inspiring!!It's been a slow process but thanks to you, I managed to dust off my dSLR over Xmas and start practicing for fun :)

This post gave me a timely reminder of a phrase that one of my teachers said to us at pastry school, "Osez!" - it always helps for those times when I'm unsure about my career change or when nerves just simply get the best of me.

What a wonderful initiative Squam is! I can see that folk from Europe have managed the hop across the 'Pond' to join in, but funds, a young son and work mean I won't make the trip (yet a while!).

However, it has got me thinking - in Malta, where I live, about doing it here. Our capital Valletta is just about to start down the road to being a European Capital of Culture, 2018 (if the EU gives it the green light). And a Squam-like project would be ideal as part of its programme. I must look into it all.

Thanks for intro-ing it to me, and I am ever hopeful Helene that you'll combine a French trip home with a course one day! A bit nearer to us European budding foodie photographers!

My special talent is...making tea. Over the last year we've had a really tough time and we've come to realise the most important thing about life is being there for your friends and family when they need you, just to listen. And a cup of tea loosens things up.

My special talent is kerning typography--I'm a stickler for good letterspacing. The Squam retreat looks like a slice of heaven! And the gleena pottery is just darling--thanks for the chance to win some.

Helene, I am thrilled you took to Squam after your initial response (!) Squam was my summer mother when I was growing up. LIterally. I spent two months directly across from Deephaven at a girls' camp, away from my parents and siblings. It was a place to grow into myself in a way that would never have been possible without that separation and without the deep connection and appreciation for nature that two months in a tent listening to the loon's cry made possible. I am happy you are teaching there and will have time to spend dipping into that pool of inspiration. I shall try to be there....if everything aligns!

I visited Squam Lake a few years ago - truly beautiful! First time to hear and see the Looms also. Did you know that the movie, On Golden Pond, was filmed on this Lake - our boat tour guide was very knowledgable about the points of interest. I can see why the whole atmosphere would cause one to reflect and invite the inner child to come out to play.

Talents - some say I have many; but I mainly do (DIY) whatever makes me happy at the moment - my inner child plays a lot and she is content!! Judy B. Texas

I love what you shared about learning to be nicer to yourself and finding your inner child again. As I sit down to write this morning and work through my own challenges, this is inspiring to hear;) Thank you for another lovely post!

I would love to be a part of squam. What a lovely word.I guess that one of my talents is my artwork, which was put aside, for a while, to homeschool. I just found my easel, while unpacking. Oh, happy day!

Sounds like a lovely workshop...perhaps one of these days! I have newbie food blog and have been experimenting with food photography. Your photos are wonderful inspiration. I suppose I'm developing a talent in that area, as I've recently had some complements on my photographs :) Of course, I still want to come to your classes. We Nashville food bloggers need to have you visit us here for a class soon!

Your photography is amazing! Thank you for the blackberry cobbler recipe ... I'll be making that soon!And my special talent is that whatever antique print or engraving or artwork you're looking for ... I can find for you xo karen

I wish I had more time to cook, clean, and get back into photography. I live vicariously through your blog in my few quiet moments. I was a photo major at uni more than a decade ago...back when digital was a nasty word. I still own my film medium format, TLR, and SLRs. I keep thinking "some day, when I can afford it, when life isn't so crazy".

Your post definitely made me pause to consider my real vs hidden talents. I consider myself an artist but I love, LOVE to experiment with baking. I never seem to follow a recipe but, instead, am inspired by recipes and use them are starting points to an unknown something else. :0)

The cups are beautiful in shape, form and color. These are very interesting and important to me as I am a food artist and big foodie as well. I love expressing my enthusiasm for food through my art. Setting up the still life or just photographing farmers' markets and/or my own gardens makes me happy and excited. My cooking adventures have lead me to many photos used in my art. I love your site and look forward to my e-mail each day. Thank you for all of your work and sharing the recipes.

What a beautiful place! I'm hopeless at photography, but I would love to just sit there and paint all day. What a wonderful opportunity! I'm so glad to have learned about it - thank you! Maybe one day!

I'm not really sure what a special talent of mine would be...perhaps the ability to burn anything the first time I cook it. I'd like to think it's always being willing to be there for friends.

How I would love to partecipate to Squam classes! and in such a beautiful location! a dream.. Enjoy and do you will report highlights of the classes on your blog, will you? Francesca from Bologna, Italy.

Your ratatouille tart looks divine. As for your feelings about Squam, I believe that all of us need to take a few days for ourselves at special places like this to revive. My special place here in Colorado is Shambhala Mountain Center. From your beautiful description and even lovelier photos I may have to venture East one of these days!

Squam sounds like so much fun [and I lurrrv coffee mugs!] So, I suppose one of my strangest talents is my ability to not forget a face. I have an almost creepy ability to identify anyone, even if I only saw them for a split second in passing. I'm not kidding. It sort of freaks me out sometimes. :)

Your food is lovely as usual, but I was touched today with "be nicer to yourself" comment. Second time I've heard that theme today and it's only 6:30 a.m. I love to see women find their creativity and stop being so goal focused, but more into the process. It makes women much happier.